The Continuing Struggle of Pollution Control in Tanneries

Despite earnest efforts by the Pakistan Tanners Association (PTA), the battle against pollution caused by discharge of untreated effluents continues. With over 1200 tanneries employing nearly 200,000 people and contributing 7% of total exports, the leather industry is an important sector of the economy. However, outdated equipment and production techniques, lack of access to solid waste disposal sites, low investments in affluent treatment plants and poor coordination between the private sector and the city, provincial and federal governments have resulted in continued pollution.

The PTA has made several suggestions, including waiver of Export Development Surcharge on treatment plants, provision of landfill sites and support in access to technical and financial resources, but progress has been slow. However, there is a silver lining to the cloud, with functional treatment plants in Karachi's Industrial Trading Estate (KITE), Kasur and Sialkot and the adoption of cleaner production technologies with help from UNIDO and the Netherlands government, helping reduce environmental pollution. Furthermore, as reported today, the development of a special zone in Sialkot on a public private partnership basis, will bring all tanneries into a spatially contiguous area and allow for common services for treatment and disposal of effluents.